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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fork · roll · shower · straw · prune · ground · object · sharp

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. roll — a cake
  3. ground — crushed
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. object — to protest
  8. fork — in a road
  9. ground — the earth
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. object — a thing
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. shower — rain
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. prune — to trim
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. object — an aim
  21. ground — a position
  22. sharp — clever
  23. shower — to wash
  24. prune — to trim

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com